Filter for cigarettes

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a structure and combination of materials for the removal by filtration of certain combustion products carried in the smokestream of a burning cigarette, said filtering means being optionally attachable or integrally attached upon the end of a cigarette at the mouth end thereof.

United States Patent Dock 1 1 Oct. 2, 1973 l l FILTER FOR CIGARETTES [56] References Cited 1751 Inventor: Mortimer Russell Dock, Arlington, UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,100,051 11/1937 Hallner 131/207 3,204,643 9/1965 Redford. 131/207 X [73] Asslgnee' The H 2 0 Corporauon NW 3,685,521 8/1972 Dock 131/187 York, NY.

[22] Filed: 17, 1971 Primary Examiner-Robert W. Michell [21] APPL 199,755 Assistant Examiner-George M. Yahwak Related US. Application Data Continuation of Ser. No. 046,747, June 16, 1970, abandoned.

US. Cl ..l3l/l0.l,131/10.7,131/187, 131/207,131/265 Int. Cl... A24b 15/02, A24d 01/04, A241" 07/04 Field of Search 13l/10.1, 187, 10.7, 131/207 [57] ABSTRACT This invention relates to a structure and combination of materials for the removal by filtration of certain combustion products carried in the smokestream of a burning cigarette, said filtering means being optionally attachable or integrally attached upon the end of a cigarette at the mouth end thereof.

7 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures lamszpazz PATENTED m 2191s 1mm TOR. MORTIMER RUSSELL DOCK- FILTER FOR CIGARETTES This application is a continuation of my application Ser. No. 46,747, now abandoned, and constitutes an improvement over US. Pat. Nos. 3,366,121, 3,502,084, 3,575,180 and 3,608,561, all of which have been assigned to and are the sole property of the assignee of this application.

The present invention has been devised to provide a filter for the cleansing and cooling of smoke from a burning cigarette.

Water was the earliest cleansing agent known to man, and in this invention water is used in combination with fibrous, absorbent, sponge-like material which entraps the impurities that are dissolved in the water and thus washed from the smokestream as the smoke is drawn through the filter. In addition, the adsorptive properties of carbon may be employed for the further entrapment of impurities carried in the smokestream.

Various structures have been created embodying the components of this invention, that is, water-bearing rupturable capsules, compressed absorbent sponge-like material, and carbon particles, all disposed within a resilient waterproofing housing. However, none has heretofore shown or contemplated the present structure, which has been found to provide increased effectiveness over any prior combination of materials or parts. Furthermore, the present invention lends itself to rapid, low-cost fabrication and at the same time provides greater smoking enjoyment than any of the prior embodiments.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the filter device of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-section taken on line 2-2 of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an end view taken on line 33 of FIg. 2; and

FIG. 4 is an end view taken on line 44 of FIG. 2.

In FIG. 5 there is shown one of the discs which form a part of the filter.

Referring more particularly to the drawings:

In FIG. 1, the filter housing is shown with the mouth end being enclosed by plate 11, said plate having therein an opening 12 for the passage therethrough of filtered smoke. At shoulder 13 the housing diameter is increased to accommodate the end of a cigarette.

The cross-section of FIG. 2 shows the annular chamber 14 formed by the wall of housing 10, end plate 11, and collar 15 around opening 12 in said plate. Said collar ensures firmness of said end plate and of opening 12 therein, and additionally, recesses all elements of the filtering material so that no part thereof comes into contact with the smokers tongue. A smoke permeable disc 16 is emplaced in abutment with said collar, and adjacent to said disc, rupturable hollow bodies 17 having a water content are disposed contiguous to and intermixed with compressed absorbent sponge-like material l8-in the form of finely divided particles. A second smoke permeable disc 19 for the containment of the sponge and water-bearing bodies within the housing, is retained in position at shoulder 13 by an annular groove 20 in the wall of the housing. The open-end chamber 21 in the end of the housing is provided to receive and accommodate the tip of a conventional cigarette, which may be filter-tipped or plain. An internal ring 22 is provided to ensure gripping of the cigarette tip by the walls of the housing and to secure the cigarette against accidental disengagement from the housmg.

Optionally, there may be intermixed with the compressed absorbent sponge-like material, a quantity of carbon particles for the adsorption thereon of some part of the moisture released from the ruptured waterbearing capsules and the retention of the impurities carried by the water and in the smokestream.

The opening 12 in end plate 11 of the housing, as shown in FIG. 3, is of sufficient diameter to permit facile passage of smoke therethrough, and the annular plate 11 which is integral with the housing and forms the end thereof, together with collar 15, provides a firm end for the filter to permit its easy retention between the smokers lips. The nature of the material forming the resilient waterproof housing, such as polypropylene, provides a pleasing softness to the filter as it is held between the smokers lips.

The open-end chamber 21 shown in FIG. 4 has a diameter and a depth sufficient to receive and retain the tip of a conventional cigarette for the ignition and smoking thereof, and ring 22 serves as a gripping member for the retention of the cigarette tip in the housing.

FIG. 5 shows a disc of the smoke permeable material used for members 16 and 19.

As has been said, the filter of the present invention may be used with any cigarette, whether filter-tipped or plain. The cleansing properties of the water released from the ruptured capsules causes a major portion of the particulate matter carried in the smokestream to be entrapped in the moistened sponge-like materiaL and since water is a poor conductor of heat, the moisture serves also to cool the smoke as it travels through the filter.

The water-bearing capsules proposed for use with the present invention are produced by 3M Company, and have a petroleum wax shell with approximately 87 percent water fill. This amount of water fill provides space for expansion of the water without rupture of the shell, in the event the capsules are subjected to freezing temperatures.

The sponge contemplated for use in this invention is produced by General Mills under the trade name 0- CEL-O, said sponge being dried and compressed, and subject to rapid expansion upon contact with and absorption of water.

The smoke permeable material used for the discs is produced by C. H. Dexter & Sons Company. Two forms are available: one, a latex impregnated cellulosic mixture of viscose rayon fiber and wood fiber forming a white filter webbing having a thickness of 15 mils and permitting an air flow of 300 cubic feet per minute. This product is designated No. C-l164 by the Dexter Company. An alternative material for use in making these discs is an activated carbon web, also produced by the Dexter Company and sold under the trade name DEXSAN. The adsorptive properties of carbon are well-known and have been variously employed in filters for the purpose of adsorbing impurities carried in the smokestream. DEXSAN combines all the properties of activated carbon with the advantages of a web material. Over half its weight consists of ultra-fine activated carbon particles, said particles being uniformly dispersed throughout the web and held by Dexters patented binder system, which does not reduce the activity of the carbon.

The filter is optionally applicable to cigarettes, and when so used, the end of the cigarette is inserted into the open-end chamber a sufficient distance to bring the end of the cigarette substantially into abutment with the smoke permeable disc.

The filter is activated by compression exerted thereon to rupture the water-bearing capsules and release their contents into the adjacent compressed absorbent sponge-like material. Such compression may be effected longitudinally when the tip of the cigarette is inserted into the housing; or, preferably, it may be effected laterally by squeezing the housing. Some smokers prefer to bite lightly on the housing as a method of rupturing the capsules. After rupture of the capsules, the filter should be rolled and squeezed gently, to break up and disperse the particles of wax among the sponge material, thus preventing the wax from creating any blocking effect to impede the passage of smoke through the filter.

After the filter has been activated, the cigarette is lighted and the smokestream carries the usual products of combustion toward and into the filter of the present invention.

The webbing of disc 19 entraps a portion of said combustion products and the smoke travels thence into the moistened sponge, where it is cooled and cleansed by the water released from the ruptured capsules and absorbed by the sponge material. Water exerts a solvent action on many substances, including many of the harmful'properties comprising the tar of tobacco smoke. Thus, many of the impurities in the smoke are dissolved by the water and entrapped and retained in the moistened sponge. Since the water-bearing capsule means are emplaced in the end of the housing nearest the burning tobacco, the principal washing action occurs in the area. The sponge particles in the end adjacent the smokers lips receive a lesser amount of moisture, and therefore serve as a drying agent for the moistened smoke, thus ensuring that no impurities dissolved in the water are carried through the filter and into the smoker's mouth.

As a further cleansing step, the smoke filtered through disc 16 deposits a portion of the remaining impurities upon the said disc, and the smoke then reaching the mouth of the smoker carries only a minor percentage of the original burden of impurities which are the products of combustion of a cigarette.

There is no adverse effect upon the flavor of the smoke, and smoking enjoyment is enhanced by the cleansing and cooling action of this filter.

In the event it is desired to use the present invention as an integral part of a filter cigarette, the housing may be foreshortened to omit the open-end chamber, and the device attached to the tobacco rod as a part of the manufacturing operation. Since such foreshortening would be obvious for the accomplishment of integral attachment, it has not been shown in the drawings.

The invention having been thus described, what is claimed is:

1. A filter device for attachment to smoking products, such as cigarettes, comprising a substantially cylindrical housing, and integral therewith at one end, an annular plate, said plate having an opening therein to permit passage of smoke therethrough, an inwardly directed collar member integral with said plate surrounding said opening; and disposed within said housing at least one rupturable hollow body having a water content and adjacent thereto and intermixed therewith, absorbent expansible sponge-like material and carbon particles, said rupturable bodies and said sponge-like material and carbon particles being retained within said housing by smoke permeable discs disposed contiguous to said material at opposite ends thereof, one said smoke permeable disc abutting the inner end of said collar member, and an open-end chamber within said housing for the accommodation of the end of a cigarette, the inner wall of said chamber having an annular groove therein retaining the other smoke permeable disc, said other permeable disc having a larger diameter than said one permeable disc.

2. The invention of claim 1 wherein said smokepermeable discs comprise activated carbon web.

3. The invention of claim 1 wherein said smokepermeable discs are a latex impregnated cellulosic mixture of viscose rayon fiber and wood fiber forming a white filter webbing.

4. The invention of claim 1 wherein said cylindrical housing is made of resilient waterproof material.

5. The invention of claim 1 wherein the housing is of increased diameter adjacent the said chamber.

6. The invention of claim 1 wherein said chamber has an annular rib thereinside for engaging firmly the end of a cigarette or cigar.

7. The invention of claim 1 incorporated as in integral part of a smoking article. 

1. A filter device for attachment to smoking products, such as cigarettes, comprising a substantially cylindrical housing, and integral therewith at one end, an annular plate, said plate having an opening therein to permit passage of smoke therethrough, an inwardly directed collar member integral with said plate surrounding said opening; and disposed within said housing at least one rupturable hollow body having a water content and adjacent thereto and intermixed therewith, absorbent expansible sponge-like material and carbon particles, said rupturable bodies and said sponge-like material and carbon particles being retained within said housing by smoke permeable discs disposed contiguous to said material at opposite ends thereof, one said smoke permeable disc abutting the inner end of said collar member, and an open-end chamber within said housing for the accommodation of the end of a cigarette, the inner wall of said chamber having an annular groove therein retaining the other smoke permeable disc, said other permeable disc having a larger diameter than said one permeable disc.
 2. The invention of claim 1 wherein said smoke-permeable discs comprise activated carbon web.
 3. The invention of claim 1 wherein said smoke-permeable discs are a latex impregnated cellulosic mixture of viscose rayon fiber and wood fiber forming a white filter webbing.
 4. The invention of claim 1 wherein said cylindrical housing is made of resilient waterproof material.
 5. The invention of claim 1 wherein the housing is of increased diameter adjacent the said chamber.
 6. The invention of claim 1 wherein said chamber has an annular rib thereinside for engaging firmly the end of a cigarette or cigar.
 7. The invention of claim 1 incorporated as in integral part of a smoking article. 